“Dange se BJP ki lahar aayi thi, andolan se jayegi (the BJP wave came after the Muzaffarnagar riots; it will go because of the farmers’ agitation),” said Omvir Singh, an aged farmer, on the outskirts of Sisauali, headquarters of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU).
In villages across the region, Jat farmers feel the BJP used them to fight its battle against Muslims but when they needed its support during the farmers’ agitation, they were left stranded and called names. It is not that the wounds of the riots have completely healed, but there’s no overriding hatred that communities have against each other. The anger is more sporadic and personal.
“We are like Hanuman. Woh bin matlab Ram ki lugayi le aaya. Hum BJP le aaye (Hanuman, without self-interest, restored Lord Ram’s wife. We brought the BJP to power but now we are called Khalistanis,” Mr. Singh said. “History tells us that we have withstood injustice. We will reverse it as well.”
The Samajwadi Party (SP)-Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) alliance has fielded non-Muslim candidates in all six seats of the district, which has around 41% Muslim population. Some observers and Muslim ticket seekers from these parties were apprehensive that it would cause despondency among Muslim voters. However, on the ground, one could not see any marked indifference. “We know why it was done. We are happy that it hasn’t become a Hindu-Muslim election in the district,” said Mohammed Karmaudin, an ironsmith in a Budhana village.
One of the reasons for the renewed bonhomie, said Shreepal Balyan, is the work that Muslims usually do for Jat farmers in the region. “Most of the ironsmiths and welders are from the minority community. What they do for ₹1, others charge ₹3,” he said.
Mr. Balyan conceded that the law and order situation had improved under the BJP’s rule. “Even my Muslim friends accept this. During the Yogi rule, their boys, who had crossed the line, have returned home. They are many criminals from our community as well. They were partners in crime,” he said.
The popular ration scheme irked some farmers. “It has made farm workers idle. They don’t turn up for work,” complained Shiv Kumar at Fugana. “Here, farmer have 8-10 bighas of land and could not afford to splurge.”
Bulls and hybrid cows are a big concern here as well. However, in this part of the sugarcane belt of western Uttar Pradesh, people associate stray bulls with Yogi Adiyanath, and fondly or mockingly call them ‘Yogi’. At a village near Charthwal, a group of farmers said one of their relatives was injured and, “You know how many stitches he got? Poore (total) 56!”
Young Azhar Saifi said Muslims had stopped transporting cattle to slaughterhouses because nobody wanted to be beaten up, first by the vigilantes and then by the police. “But we could see cattle being transported in trucks with a BJP flag. Good for them, but why this hypocrisy?” he asked.
Across the road, Sunil Kumar, a young BJP supporter, complained about the constant leaking of examination papers, litigation, and the free run of solver gangs. “However, we still vote for the BJP for giving us a secure environment,” he said. Mr. Saifi interjected, “You mean security from me.” Both laughed away at this.
Despite facing anti-incumbency, the BJP has repeated its candidates in five out of the six constituencies. Many BJP supporters said the party could have withstood opposition if it had changed candidates like Budhana MLA Umesh Malik, who faced the fire of the farmers’ agitation.
In the lower Other Backward Classes (OBC), the BJP continues to maintain its hold. Ramendra Kashyap, who grows vegetables near Shahpur, said he will vote for the party that’s giving him ration and connecting his village to big cities. “Five years back, there were potholes here. Now we could see cars zooming past,” he said.
BJP supporters were hoping to win over a large number of Dalit voters as well. “Across villages, word was being spread that Mayawati was more against the Samajwadi Party than the BJP. So, where the BSP candidate was not in a position to win, the Jatavs could vote for the BJP,” a BKU leader said.
In Union Minister Sanjeev Balyan’s village of Kutbi, most rooftops are lined with BJP flags. Here, Jat farmers said the Muslims left the village after the riots. “For us, the foremost Jat leader is Sanjeev. He has got the roads built and we are getting timely payment from the Charthawal sugar mill,” said Rishipal Mukhiya. He had no cogent answer as to why the BJP leadership was courting Chaudhary Jayant Singh when they had Mr. Balyan. How were they meeting their needs without Muslims? “We have bought welding machines and then there are social groups like Kashyaps who could do the same job,” Mr. Mukhiya said.
An elderly Omkar Singh was animated. “Muslim boys used to pass lewd comments. After the Kawal incidents where two Jat boys were killed, trouble erupted in our village as well. I was also named,” Mr. Singh said.
A few kilometers ahead, Mohammed Yameen is tending to a cow. “See, we will always be called names but I can at least keep a cow now in a Jat neighbourhood,” he said.
